Covelo: Traffic stop leads to discovery of 36 pounds of marijuana and an arrest

Authorities stopped a vehicle in Covelo last week and found 36 pounds of processed marijuana, according to the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies on patrol at about 10 p.m. Dec. 1 stopped a vehicle with expired registration tags on Highway 162 near Cemetery Lane, and spoke to the driver, who identified himself as Justin Ortez of Shingle Springs.

The deputies searched the vehicle with Ortez's permission and found 36 individual zip-sealed plastic bags containing what was later determined to be a total weight of 36 pounds of processed marijuana.

Ortez was arrested on suspicion of possessing and transporting marijuana for sale, and booked at the Mendocino County Jail under $25,000 bail.